Jones, the former N.C. State swimmer, finished third in the 100-meter freestyle to assure himself a spot on the U.S. 4x100 Olympic relay team.

For the third time in two days at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Jones swam a personal best in the event. His time of 48.35 seconds placed him behind only Garrett Weber-Gale (47.92) and Jason Lezak (48.05). Those two will represent the U.S. in the individual portion of the 100 in Beijing in August, with Jones joining them on the relay team.

"I'm really happy," Jones said. "That was my best time."

Jones was seventh out of eight after the first 50 meters and in danger of missing the squad entirely. In the 100 free, the top six make the U.S. Olympic team. But he powered through the final 50, reeling in swimmers on both sides. How did he do it?

Jones wasn't sure. "I literally closed my eyes, gritted my teeth and just went," Jones said.

He was serious. Jones closed his eyes for part of the final 50 meters, he said. When he touched the wall -- eyes open by then -- Jones didn't know where he stood. Then he looked up, saw the numbers by his name and knew he was destined for the Olympics.

With his ticket now punched for Beijing, Jones can concentrate on making the Olympic squad in a second event. The preliminaries of his bread-and-butter, the 50 freestyle, start today. The final is Saturday.

Jones is not the first African-American to make the U.S. Olympic swim team, but there have only been a handful. How much would his presence on the U.S. team help jump-start swimming among black youths?

"It depends on how much I put myself out there," Jones said, smiling widely. "And I plan to put myself out there a lot when I get back. I can say that now! When I get back! From Beijing!"